


Belly Full of Pretzels

by Melacka



Category: The Good Place (TV)
Genre: Comfort Food, Friendship, Gen, Hurt/Comfort, Stress Relief
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-06
Updated: 2020-09-06
Packaged: 2021-03-06 16:47:56
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 636
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26322136
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Melacka/pseuds/Melacka
Summary: Michael attempts to coax Chidi through a stressful episode.
Relationships: Chidi Anagonye & Michael (The Good Place)
Comments: 4
Kudos: 13
Collections: Friendship Flash Fall 2020





	Belly Full of Pretzels

**Author's Note:**

  * For [roguefaerie](https://archiveofourown.org/users/roguefaerie/gifts).



> This isn't really set at any particular point in the series, apart from being sometime after Michael becomes a friend and an ally rather than someone who is constantly messing with them all. Hope you like it!

Chidi buried his head in his hands and groaned. Loudly.

“Chidi?” Michael said, sounding like he was caught between concern and frustration. “We don’t really have time for that, right now.”

“Time for what?” Chidi mumbled resentfully, lowering himself blindly to the couch. “I think there’s always time for an emotional breakdown, Michael.”

“Come on, bud, get it together.”

“Get it together?” Chidi cried incredulously, raising his head to look directly at Michael. “Get it _together_? I don’t know what you were expecting from me in this scenario but I’m about as far from _together_ as a person can get!”

“Yeah,” Michael sighed, throwing his hands up as he crossed the room, “I suppose you’re right.”

Michael sat down on the couch next to Chidi and patted him gently on the back. Chidi stiffened slightly but didn’t try to shrug him off.

“How about you let me buy you a cup of coffee?” Michael said after a moment of silence.

“I don’t want coffee.”

“How about something to eat, huh?”

“I’m not hungry.”

“Come on, now. I don’t think you really want to keep going round in circles, here.”

“I’m not—”

“Come with me, now. I’ll get you a warm pretzel.”

“Pretzel?” Chidi parroted weakly. “Why?”

“Nothing comforts a soul like a belly full of warm pretzels,” Michael said jovially, jumping up from the couch quickly. “Let’s go!”

“Michael, some things can’t be fixed by pretzels! You don’t get to distract me with food, I’m not a child!”

“I know that, bud,” Michael said, his whole demeanour changing abruptly. “But you need to get away from this.”

“I can’t get away from this, Michael!” Chidi burst out. “As you so helpfully reminded me just now, we don’t have time for me to stop. I need to keep going, I need to find a solution, and no one is coming to help me with that. No one _ever_ comes to help me. I’m on my own, here, Michael.”

“That’s not true, Chidi,” Michael said gently. “You know that’s not true.”

“Do I know that? Really? I don’t know that I _know_ much of anything anymore.”

“Chidi, I know you’re stressed.”

“What gave me away?” Chidi barked sarcastically.

“I know you’re stressed,” Michael continued placidly. “And I know you’re feeling overwhelmed, but you don’t have to be alone in this. You don’t _have_ to come up with a solution all on your own.”

“But you said—”

“We’re counting on you, Chidi, but that doesn’t mean we won’t _help_ you.”

“But—”

“No, no more buts, Chidi! Get up!” Michael waved his hands at him impatiently and Chidi rose obediently from the couch, too surprised to do anything else. “I know it’s hard for you to accept, but you are no longer alone. You have people here who will help you. Who _want_ to help you, if only you’d let them.”

“Michael, I don’t know—”

“There are so many things you don’t know, Chidi! So many questions that haven’t been answered! So many mysteries left to be solved!”

“Really not helping,” Chidi said weakly.

“But you don’t have to solve them alone!”

Chidi sighed and closed his eyes, searching for some measure of calm. Some secret reserve of serenity or resilience he had heretofore been unaware of. _Anything_ to help him get through this.

“Come on, Chidi,” Michael coaxed gently. “Let’s go find your friends.”

Chidi let his breath out in a rush.

“Yeah, okay.”

“And maybe some of those pretzels, huh?” Michael said eagerly.

“What is it with you and the pretzels all of a sudden?”

Michael smiled slowly and clapped his arm around Chidi’s shoulders.

“Never underestimate the value of a belly full of warm pretzels, Chidi!”

“Just one more of those unsolvable mysteries?” he replied dryly, allowing Michael to steer him from the room.

“Something like that.”

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you to anyone who reads/leaves kudos/comments! I always appreciate it!


End file.
